Atmosphere – Jestures

Since 1996, the Minneapolis hip-hop duo Atmosphere, comprising rapper Slug (Sean Daley) and DJ/producer Ant (Anthony Davis), has remained remarkably consistent. Three decades in, Jestures is proof that they are still on top of their game.

Atmosphere is one of a handful of hip-hop acts that I actually like. I dig Ant’s vintage funk and soul beats, as well as Slug’s flow and storytelling lyrics. The fact that we are all Minneapolis southsiders doesn’t hurt either. Atmosphere are aging gracefully which has made it easy for this old man to follow their career.

From the Rhymesayers Entertainment website:

On Jestures, Atmosphere’s sprawling new album, Slug digs deep into the complexities of life, confronting the unexpected points of friction in middle-aged domesticity and stability. Long past the belief that great art needs great pain, he challenges the notion that creativity must stem from trauma. Instead, their fifth release of the 2020s explores a different kind of tension—one rooted in reflection, responsibility, and the quiet revelations of daily life. The result is a record that captures personal evolution without romanticizing the past or fearing the future. 

The album’s format is as ambitious as its themes: 26 songs, each beginning with a different letter of the alphabet, sequenced in order from A to Z. Even the guest features follow suit—Evidence appears on “Effortless,” Kurious on “Kilowatts,” and Musab, Muja Messiah, and Mike the Martyr all land on “Mash.” While the tracklist might seem sprawling, many of these songs are deceptively short—often just one or two verses—delivering their core ideas with surgical precision. The effect is a curated, flowing mosaic that captures a full emotional and creative arc without overstaying its welcome. 

More than a retrospective, Jestures is a meditation on movement and meaning—on how time shapes us, and how even the mundane can be transformative. Slug blends past and present with ease, referencing iconic Atmosphere sounds while exploring evolving relationships, memory, and self-awareness. Ant’s rich production provides the perfect backdrop, shifting between electro-glitch, somber drones, and playful twang. At its heart, Jestures is a story of progress, building toward a future defined by resilience and creative clarity.

Despite the restrictions of the alphabet concept, the song sequence doesn’t feel forced. The album flows smoothly.

I have met Slug and Ant a few times (Minneapolis is ultimately a small town, and these are the least pretentious “rock stars” you could ever imagine), and they are totally relatable. Slug declares he is an optimistic skeptic in “Ophidiophobia,” which is my brand – I can relate.

Jestures is not mind-blowing; it is just like meeting an old friend you haven’t seen in years and picking up where you left off, as if it were yesterday when you last talked.

Postscript: I picked up Jestures at my favorite record store, Electric Fetus, in Minneapolis, and when I brought it up to the cash register, the clerk swapped it out for an autographed copy. Rhymesayers, Atmosphere’s label, does such a great job with packaging – per the hype label:

EMBOSSED & SPOT / GLOSS GATEFOLD JACKET / WITH DIE CUT RECORD SLEEVES

Tracklist:

Side A

1. Asshole
2. Baby
3. Caddy
4. Daley
5. Effortless (feat. Evidence)
6. Furthermore
7. Grateful

Side B

8. Heavy Lifting (feat. Haphduzn)
9. Instrument
10. Jester
11. Kilowatts (feat. Kurious)
12. Locusts
13. Mash (feat. Mike the Martyr, Musab, and Muja Messiah)

Side C

14. Neptune
15. Ophidiophobia
16. Past
17. Quicksand
18. Really
19. Sean

Side D

20. Trying
21. Used To
22. Velour
23. Westbound
24. XXX
25. Yearning (feat. Yoni Wolf of WHY?)
26. Zorro (feat. ZooDeVille)